• Dylan Derdaele and Nicolas Saelens start the season with a victory
• Mixed feelings for RED ANT Racing
Finally! After many months of patience, the participants of the Porsche Endurance Trophy Benelux were able to race again this weekend, as part of the Zolder New Race Festival. The championship is, like previous years, part of the Belcar Endurance Championship. This weekend the drivers of the Porsche Endurance Trophy Benelux got to race for three hours straight.
Naturally, the brand new Porsche 911 GT3 Cup type 992 was eagerly awaited. There were three cars of the newest cup generation on the starting grid, two from Belgium Racing and one from RED ANT Racing. Dylan Derdaele and Nicolas Saelens were given the favorite role, and immediately met expectations. The drivers of Belgium Racing started the 2021 season with a clear victory in the GT division of the Belcar. An excellent way to open the record of the new Porsche 911 GT3 Cup!
The 992 cars were the big trendsetters of this season opener, but two cars did not come out of the battle unscathed. On the 35th lap, it came to a collision between Belgium Racing's second 992, shared by brothers Koen and Kris Wauters, and the RED ANT Racing car, owned by Bert, Yannick and Ayrton Redant. For the Redant family, the race was over immediately - radiator leak - and although the Wauters brothers were able to continue the race, they lost a lot of time and places.
All in favor of the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup type 991 of Jan Ooms and Glenn Paenen (Belgium Racing). With the previous generation of the cup car, they were able to move up to second place in the GTA class and the GT division of the Belcar championship. Despite the setback, Koen and Kris Wauters still managed to claim the third podium place in GTA.
Of course, RED ANT Racing had hoped for more in GTA, but they were able to console themselves with the victory in GTB. After a problem-free race, the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport of Sven Van Laere, Davy Vandekerckhove and Sem Geerts was the first of its category to cross the finish line.
The second race of the Porsche Endurance Trophy Benelux will be held in Germany, as the support act for the 12 Hours of Hockenheim.